Reserve Selection has nothing to do with variable brining. So why the reference to a thread about that?

My point is he very probably is looking into buying a softener with a 7000 control valve and wants variable brining, and I saw yesterday that the 7000 may not be selling very well. He may want to know that.

Sorry you had trouble understanding that without me explaining it to you.

The 7000SXT does not have variable brining, some of the custom 7000's do have it. Watts has one of the best 7000 variants which has a very well designed and well thought outvariable brining feature. Some companies also sell the 7000XTR, this also has variable brining.

Variable brining has a lot of potential, especially when a system is undersized. If a system is properly sized, the variable brining feature becomes less of a factor.

During a recent test, we were able to see a much higher efficiency when we installed a .5 cu. ft. system with the 7000XTR to a house with 22 grains, and 5 people. The variable brining was able to minimize the salt waste caused by regenerating every night. I was impressed by the systems ability to accurately regenerate the system, and maintain soft water without wasting salt as a non variable brining system would do.

A variable brining design could be used commercially as well in place of a twin alternating system (not recommended) The system will still have an hour of hard water in the middle of the night, but this is better than doubling your salt usage.

If you install an undersized system with variable brining you will minimize wasted salt, but water conservation will go out the window.

Did you happen to notice that Lifespeed has posted on a couple other threads here concerning HIS 7000SXT and you even answered him. Keep with the program Einstein, you're falling behind LOL

Are you Really going to harrass him for mis-spelling brining? Really? Good lord folks......

Here, I'll save you the trouble of trying to prove me wrong.

This is from an earlier post by him
I think a lot of your problems come from not reading posts or following threads and you get confused and then lash out at folks that are just trying to help.

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DIY Member Join Date Apr 2007
Location California
Posts 96 brine quantity check
How accurate is the brine quantity generated by the timed flow from a fixed restrictor at the end of a regen cycle? In my case I'm using a Fleck 7000SXT with 0.25 GPM restrictor. I wanted to confirm the correct quantity of brine in the tank, so I measured the brine level and calculated the volume. Then I realized I was measuring the solid salt displacing the brine as well. That won't work . . .

I guess I am wondering how a measured brine quantity that sits in the tank for three weeks measures out after evaporation. Yes, three weeks is along time between regens. I guess we're a low-flow household.

Is this an issue that warrants concern? Should I put an extra 0.25 gallons in the tank to account for evaporation? Also, where do I find the restrictor to confirm the correct size? Is it behind the clip that holds the brine line into the valve?

My apologies to you folks trying hard to keep this thread straight. By now it looks like a can of Franco-American doesn't it?

No, Einstein, sorry no.... In a futile attempt to shorten what I was certain would turn into yet another derailed mess I posted a link to another thread here that might help explain the difference between variable brining and variable reserve and I am even man enough to admit that I didn't read all the posts there and maybe should have but either way his question is answered. And for the record HE DOES HAVE A FLECK 7000SXT LOL

So here is what I don't get about variable brining: the quantity of brine is set by the brine fill AFTER a regen. But you need the brine quantity for a regen to be set BEFORE the regen so that you don't waste salt be regenerating unused capacity.

Or maybe that is the difference - variable brining does a brine fill before the regen, using the amount of salt required to regenerate to full capacity, without regenerating unused capacity.

I had actually thought this would be useful for an oversize system (mine) so salt would not be used unnecesarily if the time between regens (day override) was set to a shorter time than that dictated by capacity and water use. I get about 3800 gallons of capacity out of my 30K grain (6 lbs/ft) 1.5 cu ft system. But it takes about 3 weeks to use that much water, and I have DO set to 24.

Some say it is important to regen every 8 days for softener resin health. Personally, I am sceptical. I have city water and a GAC filter in front, so hard to believe the resin is getting very dirty between cycles.

No, Einstein, sorry no.... In a futile attempt to shorten what I was certain would turn into yet another derailed mess I posted a link to another thread here that might help explain the difference between variable brining and variable reserve and I am even man enough to admit that I didn't read all the posts there and maybe should have but either way his question is answered. And for the record HE DOES HAVE A FLECK 7000SXT LOL

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If you knew this stuff, or what you don't know, you wouldn't be attempting to link to a thread about the difference between variable brining and variable reserve while not answering the question of whether or not a 7000STX has variable BRINING.

If you knew how to link or quote... I mean there are simple instructions, that might help too.

So here is what I don't get about variable brining: the quantity of brine is set by the brine fill AFTER a regen. But you need the brine quantity for a regen to be set BEFORE the regen so that you don't waste salt be regenerating unused capacity.

Click to expand...

After a regeneration is called post refill. For either variable brining, also called proportional bring, or variable reserve, pre refill must be used. Then there is a pause while the water dissolves the salt. The amount o water added to the salt tank in the refill position is varied by a computer and is just enough to regenerate the USED capacity since the last regeneration. After brine refill, the regeneration starts.

I had actually thought this would be useful for an oversize system (mine) so salt would not be used unnecesarily if the time between regens (day override) was set to a shorter time than that dictated by capacity and water use. I get about 3800 gallons of capacity out of my 30K grain (6 lbs/ft) 1.5 cu ft system. But it takes about 3 weeks to use that much water, and I have DO set to 24.

Some say it is important to regen every 8 days for softener resin health. Personally, I am sceptical. I have city water and a GAC filter in front, so hard to believe the resin is getting very dirty between cycles.

Click to expand...

Without me getting into specifics that you probably wouldn't agree with anyway, IMO you should learn more about programming a softener. BTW, you can set the capacity and salt dose lower (than 6lbs/cuft) and increase salt efficiency and not harm the water efficiency all that much even if you didn't reduce number the minutes of the cycle positions of the regeneration.

And IMO that carbon prefilter is probalby supposed to protect the resin from chlorine but, it will probably end up harming the resin due to decreased flow through it and you not regenerating the resin frequently enough but... there are a number of people here that like to disagree with most everything I say.

Without me getting into specifics that you probably wouldn't agree with anyway, IMO you should learn more about programming a softener. BTW, you can set the capacity and salt dose lower (than 6lbs/cuft) and increase salt efficiency and not harm the water efficiency all that much even if you didn't reduce number the minutes of the cycle positions of the regeneration.

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No big trick to program a softener once you understand what all the cryptic abreviations are for. I chose 6 lbs/ft based on information that less salt would reduce water quality, not just capacity. I know that using 4 lbs/ft would reduce capacity and time between regens, but I don't want to reduce water quality as well.

And IMO that carbon prefilter is probalby supposed to protect the resin from chlorine but, it will probably end up harming the resin due to decreased flow through it and you not regenerating the resin frequently enough but... there are a number of people here that like to disagree with most everything I say.

Click to expand...

The carbon filter is a 1.5 cu ft 12" X 54" Fleck 7000SXT tank that flows far more than the 2.5 GPM backwash requirement of the softener. Did you assume it was something else? From the water meter, through the water treatment, all the way to my NRC1111DVNG tankless heater, I made sure my new plumbing would not lack flow capacity.

So here is what I don't get about variable brining: the quantity of brine is set by the brine fill AFTER a regen. But you need the brine quantity for a regen to be set BEFORE the regen so that you don't waste salt be regenerating unused capacity.

Or maybe that is the difference - variable brining does a brine fill before the regen, using the amount of salt required to regenerate to full capacity, without regenerating unused capacity.

I had actually thought this would be useful for an oversize system (mine) so salt would not be used unnecesarily if the time between regens (day override) was set to a shorter time than that dictated by capacity and water use. I get about 3800 gallons of capacity out of my 30K grain (6 lbs/ft) 1.5 cu ft system. But it takes about 3 weeks to use that much water, and I have DO set to 24.

Some say it is important to regen every 8 days for softener resin health. Personally, I am sceptical. I have city water and a GAC filter in front, so hard to believe the resin is getting very dirty between cycles.

Click to expand...

You are correct. If your system is being used for iron removal, higher salt and moe frequent regenerations should be done, otherwise, for the mojority of applications, regeneration once a month is not a problem. Consider the exchange tank business, most of those go for a month, many are on bi-monthly schedules, the resin in these systems lasts for many years. If you have a lot of dirt, etc, regeneration frequency should also be increased. Your carbon tank will not affect your softener in a negative way, not really sure what the comment from the harrasser was supposed to mean. Your carbon tank will probably peak around 15-20 GPM, I dont see any problems there.

No big trick to program a softener once you understand what all the cryptic abreviations are for. I chose 6 lbs/ft based on information that less salt would reduce water quality, not just capacity. I know that using 4 lbs/ft would reduce capacity and time between regens, but I don't want to reduce water quality as well.

The carbon filter is a 1.5 cu ft 12" X 54" Fleck 7000SXT tank that flows far more than the 2.5 GPM backwash requirement of the softener. Did you assume it was something else? From the water meter, through the water treatment, all the way to my NRC1111DVNG tankless heater, I made sure my new plumbing would not lack flow capacity.

Click to expand...

Ohhhhhhh, SNAP!! Smacked down by a DIYer who has his ducks in a row....